Chapter 46
“She’s a tough woman.”
The deputy (the aide) silently clicked his tongue.
By the time the woman finished her tenth lap, her eyes were already losing focus, and her legs were dragging.
Still, that kind of endurance was far above what most people her age could do.
“I heard she was sick for a long time.”
Someone who had been seriously ill as a child shouldn’t have this much stamina.
But what really bothered the deputy wasn’t her strength — it was her attitude.
If she couldn’t keep up, she could have slowed down, complained, or asked to run fewer laps.
She could’ve cheated a bit — shortened the route or pretended to run while walking.
There were plenty of ways to handle it when things got tough.
So why?
Why did she keep going, like someone who had never once allowed herself to give up?
It wasn’t as if she had any real reason to push herself so hard.
“Does she want to get close to the Duke that badly…?”
The deputy recalled hearing about how the Duke (Ishtan Gladinare) and the Baroness Anastasia Roxan once argued loudly right in front of the mansion.
Rumor said it had been because of a love potion, that they’d been forced into that situation —
but honestly, they had fought just like ex-lovers.
Messy, awkward, and uncomfortable to watch.
Still, that had nothing to do with him.
“I’ll just scare her enough that she leaves on her own.”
And at the time, the deputy was confident that would be easy.
* * *
Ten days passed quickly.
By now, I was used to seeing the deputy waiting for me at the entrance of the government office.
He gave me a brief nod and then looked away, pretending to be disinterested.
Today, however, he was with a small group — knights wearing their usual uniforms.
I gave them a polite nod. They responded with the same — not cold, not friendly. Just… neutral.
That was fine by me.
“Are we heading out?” I asked.
“Yes,” he replied.
“For what mission?”
“Arrest,” he said shortly.
Apparently, the higher-ups had already caught the main leaders of a criminal group, and now they were rounding up the underlings.
It wasn’t an important mission — which was probably why I was allowed to join.
Technically, I ranked just below the deputy, but I wasn’t a knight and not exactly an officer either.
So in command situations, things could get a little confusing.
But I didn’t mind. I usually worked alone anyway.
As long as the deputy and I ignored each other most of the time, it was fine.
Just then, I turned around, and he immediately snapped,
“Who are you looking for? If you’re treating this mission lightly—”
“I just felt someone’s presence,” I said.
“The Duke isn’t here today,” he cut in.
“…”
Seriously. This man was more stubborn than the Duke himself.
At least the Duke listened when I spoke.
The deputy, on the other hand, was impossible.
When someone suddenly ran out of the nearby building, he looked at me for a split second — then quickly turned away.
See? I was right. I did feel something.
I smirked inwardly.
Someone handed the deputy a message. He checked it and then mounted his horse.
And that was when I noticed something unexpected.
“Wait— that’s you?”
Standing in front of me was the black horse I had chosen during the hunting festival.
So the Duke took care of it that day…
I hadn’t had time to deal with the horse after the chaos back then. I assumed it was sent back to the palace.
No one said anything, but since everyone else had their own horses ready, this one must have been prepared for me.
I smiled a little and climbed onto its back.
“Hey, long time no see.”
I patted its neck, and it dipped its head as if it understood me.
Then we all rode out together.
We soon arrived at a place I recognized all too well —
The dark back alleys of the capital.
The same filthy streets where I once searched desperately for the person who had given me the potion.
The stench, the hostility of the people who lived in the shadows — everything was the same.
Back then, I had even helped arrest a few criminals here.
As memories surfaced, I followed the deputy and the knights into a narrow street.
They surrounded a building and quickly went inside.
Some stayed behind to block the exits.
I waited outside so I wouldn’t get in the way.
Soon, I heard the noise of a brief struggle — shouts, crashes, and then silence.
The Duke’s knight division, veterans from the war, were fast and efficient.
No gang of street thugs could stand against them.
Everything seemed to be wrapping up smoothly when—
Tap.
A faint sound caught my ear.
It was small — but out of place.
Something about it made my skin prickle.
No one should be able to escape. The knights had sealed every exit.
Still, I followed the sound.
Up above, a second-floor window was open.
Was that what I heard? The sound of it opening?
I looked at the knight guarding the alley below, but he hadn’t noticed anything.
I squinted at the window.
Did someone open it to look down? To escape? But… they’d see the guard below.
I quietly slipped into the building.
Blood was splattered on the floor in a few places.
A few men lay unconscious — one clearly dead after resisting.
I could feel the deputy’s eyes on me as I walked past him, but I ignored it.
He’d taught me all kinds of “rules” — how to investigate, how to arrest — but most of it boiled down to,
‘Don’t cause trouble and try not to die.’
Nothing particularly useful.
Still, I decided to show I’d learned something.
I scanned the room again — carefully.
That’s when I noticed a pile of laundry on the floor.
“What are you doing?” the deputy asked, walking toward me.
I raised a finger to my lips.
He frowned — and just then, I kicked the laundry basket as hard as I could.
Crash!
A grown man rolled out of it.
He threw off the clothes, panicking, trying to get up—
And immediately fell again when I hooked my foot around his ankle.
I grinned at the deputy.
“What does it look like? Arresting a suspect.”
The man tried again, this time lunging at me — a flash of metal in his hand.
A knife.
My smile faded.
Thud!
The deputy stepped closer just as I grabbed the man’s arm and flipped him hard to the ground.
“Didn’t you teach me self-defense?” I said, pinning the man down.
The deputy stared silently, as if to say, That doesn’t look like self-defense.
I didn’t care.
I snatched the dagger from the man, spun it once, and handed it hilt-first to the deputy.
Knights came over and dragged the man away.
I released his arm and stepped back.
For a brief moment, our eyes met — his eyes trembling —
and then he turned away in fear, almost relieved to be taken away from me.
I didn’t even hit him that hard, I thought.
He had been the one to attack first.
Why was he that scared?
I couldn’t make sense of it.
When the deputy checked his records, he frowned.
“He’s not on the list.”
“Then he shouldn’t have been hiding,” I replied coldly.
“So determined,” the deputy murmured. “Still upset from being attacked?”
“What’s there to be upset about? It’s not the first time someone’s pulled a knife on me.”
“…”
He said nothing for a while. Then, kicking a bit of laundry aside, he asked,
“How did you know he was there?”
“I heard him breathing,” I said simply.
“Breathing?” he repeated, clearly doubting me.
“Yeah,” I added. “He was shaking with fear. His breath gave him away.”
It couldn’t have been one of the knights — they were calm and steady.
So it had to be someone hiding.
I gave the deputy a look that said ‘see for yourself’, but he just stared back, unwilling to admit I was right.
